["At this moment, you and I have coincidentally shared the same dream, appearing in each other's thoughts. This is the [Land of Dreams]'s initial greeting to us." The purple-haired woman said, "Don't worry, you will soon wake up from this dream, forget everything that happened here, and only be left with a faint melancholy."]
["The woman slowly turned around: "…So, come with me. I will take you home.""]
[Stelle followed the woman out of the room and found that the layout and decoration of this dream were just like a hotel. The woman waited for her in front of the large door at the end of the road: "The Galaxy Ranger, Acheron… This is how they address me. Feel free to use it."]
[Stelle followed Acheron through the final door. The sudden brilliant light made her squint involuntarily. When her pupils adjusted to the light, an unimaginably luxurious hall unfolded before her eyes.]
[Crystal chandeliers poured down golden light, illuminating the murals on the dome. Curtains around the hall were studded with various gemstones, casting swaying reflections on the floor. The air was filled with the fragrance of roses and champagne… but there was no presence of living people.]
[It was precisely this sense of dissonance that made Stelle realize once again that this was only a dream.]
[Stelle continued following Acheron, but her figure suddenly disappeared. Accompanied by a "You first," Stelle saw a connected arch bridge appear on the wall in front of her.]
[Just as she was wondering if she should step on it, the sole of her boot accidentally touched it. In an instant, the entire world suddenly tilted—]
[The wall flipped beneath her feet, like a canvas abruptly lifted by an invisible hand. The ceiling crashed down to the side, and the original crystal chandelier now looked like a fountain, still maintaining its original appearance.]
[(It can actually do that?! )]
[Acheron said indifferently: "Why not?"]
[(She can hear what I'm thinking?)]
[Acheron's voice seemed to carry a faint, almost imperceptible chuckle: "…Why not?"]
——
Arcane.
"So that's how it is…" Jayce looked up at the dreamy scene beneath Stelle's feet. He was stunned for a moment before finally understanding what exactly made Penacony so attractive.
It was dreams.
"So the entire Penacony is an artificial dream? This is just… too crazy."
It took Viktor a long time to tear his gaze away from the magnificent hall. As a poor boy from the undercity, he had never seen such splendor. He had never even dreamed of such things. Rather than calling it a "beautiful dream," it was more accurate to call it "paradise."
"No wonder people flock here desperately. In dreams, they can break free from the shackles of the body and exist purely as spiritual entities. Then, all pain, poverty, and suffering cease to exist, leaving only endless revelry…"
When he said the word "pain," Viktor subconsciously looked down at his cane. Envy almost overflowed from his pupils.
"Listen, Viktor. Although Penacony looks beautiful, it's ultimately just a dream… It can't change the essence of reality."
Jayce recalled that a few years ago he had read in the newspaper about a Zaun alchemical baron who developed a hallucinogenic agent that could make people briefly fall into illusory dreams. The agent was intercepted during circulation to the upper city and never heard of again. Although the effects of that agent and Penacony's beautiful dreams were vastly different, they shared one common point — their essence was false.
"But—"
"Absolutely perfect dreams do not exist, Viktor."
Heimerdinger suddenly appeared outside the laboratory door, carrying a thick stack of documents. He laboriously jumped onto a chair. "All beauty in this world is relative. Without the contrast of misfortune, one cannot taste the wonder of happiness. Moreover, no matter how beautiful something is, experiencing it too much will make it hollow and boring… Believe me, Viktor, even in dreams, misfortune will follow like a shadow."
——
["We're almost there. Can you still walk?" Acheron looked back at Stelle.]
["I've already climbed the wall, feeling great." Stelle gave a thumbs up.]
["Very humorous. Then I'll assume you're fine. Don't stop, don't look back, don't look down, and don't look up." After the warning, Acheron ran ahead toward the front of the dream without looking back.]
[However, Stelle's specialty was rebellion. If you tell her not to look, she'll definitely look. She was soon attracted by two people beside her: Silver Wolf chatting with an extremely — extremely cool mecha.]
[Looking at the mecha, Stelle's eyes lit up instantly.]
[Silver Wolf looked up at the mecha: "How did you drag them into this?"]
["By presenting the truth in full, they will naturally come to the appointment."]
[After speaking, the images of the two disappeared.]
——
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind.
"Puhahahaha—!!"
Mista's laughter exploded in the villa like a misfired revolver.
"Silver Wolf is still not even half as tall as SAM, she's way too short!" He pointed at the scene on the screen where Silver Wolf and SAM stood together. The extreme height difference between the two was like a parent bringing their daughter to a parent-teacher meeting. He laughed so hard he rocked back and forth.
"SAM's legs are two sections taller than her entire body, hahaha! Are they really colleagues?"
"Hey! You guy—"
Trish's high heel stomped hard on Mista's foot, seamlessly turning his laughter into a wail.
"How can someone even mock a girl's growth period? Silver Wolf looks like she's only in her teens, right? So what if she's a bit short?" She glanced at her star-space blue nail polish and glared at Mista in disgust. "…No wonder you can only spend your life with a gun. Go shoot your gun!"
Giorno directly ignored the quarrel between the two and looked at Fugo: "The Stellaron Hunters won't appear for no reason. The two reasons I can think of for them coming to Penacony are…"
Fugo knowingly raised two fingers and continued Giorno's words: "First, a Stellaron has appeared in Penacony. Second, the two of them are here to protect Stelle." After all, Stelle was also a key figure in Elio's plan and could not be lost. With the threat of Duke Inferno present, arranging a combatant of SAM's level for protection was reasonable.
Moreover, from SAM's words, it was not difficult to hear that this man also held important information.
Fugo looked up at the screen and saw Stelle walking toward a man and woman with rings on the back of their heads and two wings growing beside their heads.
——
[The man was handsome and noble in demeanor. He quietly looked at the girl in front of him: "The stage of the [Harmonious Concert] belongs only to you, sister."]
[The girl lowered her eyes, a trace of sadness flashing in her gaze: "But if I cannot sing… what meaning does the stage have?"]